Robb Comes To Amsterdam Pt.5 – The Amsterdam Pride Parade (and more!)

In New York City, the big Pride parade occurs on the Sunday of Pride Weekend, traditionally the last Sunday in June.  In Amsterdam, however, the parade occurs on Saturday. Rather than march down the street, the floats sail down the Prinsengracht canal.  In New York, traffic is a nightmare and trying to get from one side of town to the…

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"When We Rise: My Life in the Movement" by Cleve Jones

Quick Book Review: “When We Rise: My Life in the Movement” by Cleve Jones

A fascinating memoir by Cleve Jones, creator of the AIDS quilt, and lifelong gay rights advocate.  This is a very personal, first person account detailing the struggle for gay, lesbian, and transgender rights.  Although the story has been told many times, for me, it never gets old.  The stories of San Francisco in the 70’s, the wildness of the Castro…

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How I Spent My Winter 2019 Pt.4 – Bangkok (the next day…)

For Day 2, the itinerary was lighter:  A visit to another temple (Wat Suthat), and then a local park, and then finish the day strolling through Bangkok’s extensive Chinatown. First, I chowed down at the hotel’s excellent buffet.  I took a tuk-tuk to Wat Suthat, just north of Chinatown.   Wat Suthat is one of the city’s most beautiful and biggest…

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Mission Rabies Goa 2018

Mission Rabies Goa – Chapter 14: Mission Accomplished, and Saying Goodbye

All good things eventually must come to an end, and that includes this incredible adventure.  The vaccinating and caring for the animals goes on all year, but these Mission Rabies volunteer projects are only two weeks long, and the last day had (all too quickly) arrived.   We gathered at the reception area in the morning as usual, and rolled out…

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Mission Rabies Goa – Chapter 11: Recharging our Batteries

The Mission Rabies vaccination drive is exhilarating, but it’s physically taxing work.  You wake up early and spend nearly the entire day chasing down dogs, in stifling heat and humidity.  Fortunately, the Mission Rabies folks provided us with the opportunity to recharge our batteries after the first week, by arranging a relaxing, meditation retreat for the volunteers.  On Saturday morning,…

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Kid and his Doggie - Mission Rabies Goa India

Mission Rabies Goa: Chapter 10 – The People of Goa

In my previous post, I described Goa as a city of crazy contrasts and contradictions, and that’s true. There is one thing, however, that remains consistent about Goa, and that is its residents: the kindest, friendliest, and most appreciative people I’ve ever had the honor of meeting.  Although I knew that the impetus behind Mission Rabies is to reduce the…

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Sunset in Goa India

Mission Rabies Goa – Chapter 9: The Scenery

The two weeks of this vaccination drive were amazing.  Goa had me totally mesmerized. Rather than blog about the trip chronologically, I’m going to highlight some of the most memorable aspects of the entire mission.  I thought I’d start with the scenery and natural beauty.  Goa is a state on the western coast of India. The Portuguese first landed there…

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Mission Rabies Goa Puppy

Mission Rabies Goa – Chapter 4: Three Days To Go!

Yesterday, I spent the day packing. Weather reports show the temperature in Goa, Delhi, and Mumbai to be in the high 80s and possibly low 90s, so I’m just bringing shorts. I’ll have one pair of long pants, and those will be the pants I’ll be wearing on the flight. The Mission Rabies handbook says that I’ll need long pants…

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Mission Rabies Goa

Mission Rabies Goa – Chapter 3: What We Will Be Doing

As the date approached, I began receiving occasional e-mails from the Mission Rabies volunteer coordinator detailing the finer aspects of the mission.  For example, we were gently reminded that many of Mission Rabies’s projects take place in warm countries, so that we should avoid risks like sunburn, heat stroke, or heat exhaustion.  I looked up, on the internet, the average…

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Mission Rabies Logo

Mission Rabies Goa – Chapter 1: Mission Accepted!

When I retired last year, I thought my life could be divided into my “professional identity” and my “civilian identity”, and I was happy to leave my professional identity – and all of the stresses that arose from that – behind, and just live happily with my civilian identity. But being a veterinarian is not like being a toll collector…

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